


Observation

by firerwolf



Series: Spartan IV [1]
Category: Halo (Video Games) & Related Fandoms
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-05
Updated: 2016-03-05
Packaged: 2018-05-24 23:42:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6171400
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firerwolf/pseuds/firerwolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chief Mendez asks Kelly to make some observations about the new Spartan IVs</p>
            </blockquote>





	Observation

Kelly stood in the observation room, watching the Spartan IVs inside the holo-chamber as they played a war game identified as oddball. They'd been running the game type all day and Kelly had been watching for several hours. A Spartan in red and yellow recruit armor cursed over the COMMs as another Spartan in purple and orange EOD armor gunned him down from behind just feet away from the corner the ball holder was around. Kelly just watched in disappointment as the EOD armored Spartan rounded the corner just to have the ball slammed into his head and kill him. Sadly Kelly wasn't really surprised by the failure or the absolute botch of a good opportunity.

The door to the observation room opened and Kelly turned to see Senior Chief Petty Officer Mendez enter. Kelly turned to face him and snapped to attention. "Sir," she greeted crisply.

"As you were, Spartan," Mendez said as he moved to stand beside Kelly. It felt odd to have her rank referred to as Spartan. She was a Spartan, the way ODST were ODST, but even ODST had ranks on top of that title. She'd been a Petty Officer for so many years the new rank was taking some getting used to. "What do you think of them?" Mendez asked, staring down at the screen showing the statistics of the current game. "Rather one sided," the Chief muttered.

Kelly hesitated, not wanting to say anything wrong about the Spartan IVs. She would have to try to stay impartial and she didn't think it was exactly fair to compare them to Spartan IIs. "They aren't exactly what I expected," Kelly admitted cautiously. The Spartan IVs were just getting off the ground so a bad word from her might get to higher ears and she wouldn't want to diminish how important the Spartan IVs were. "I'm sure they'll improve over time, after all it has only been a few months since they were fully approved."

"What about them disappoints you?" Mendez asked. Kelly frowned, feeling uncomfortable with the question. Kelly had never been one to want to speak ill of others, particularly when it might cause them trouble. But Mendez had known her almost all of her life and he knew here well enough to recognize her hesitation. "I'm just asking, Spartan, not in any formal purpose. They want my advice on how to train these new Spartans but you know better than me exactly what they'll be up against."

"Do I?" Kelly asked, watching as another Spartan had the ball slammed into his head. "Does anyone know what they'll be up against? The war is over, so what exactly will they be fighting?"

"ONI intel indicates Covenant religious groups and possibly human rebels in the future. From the report about The Sangheili the Arbiter only has command of some of his people but there are still human hating groups that may attack us. There's also word of a new rebel organization growing in the colonies." Mendez tapped the controls of the screen and started to flip through the previous records from the war games. "So I'll ask again: what do you think of these Spartans?"

Kelly didn't answer right away but it was more to get her thoughts in line and answer him as best she could. "They likely aren't what the brass wanted," she began. "They want more Spartan IIs but like the Spartan IIIs they just aren't. It also feels like they haven't made it clear that augmentation and armor don't make you a Spartan any more than the armor makes an ODST. They seem to just hand them armor after the augmentations when it feels like it should be earned." Mendez nodded, acknowledging her words. "It also seems like they're wasting a lot of Spartans."

"You think that there are Spartans being put in the wrong positions?" Mendez asked, turning his gaze to the screen of the action below. "Where would you prefer they be?"

"It's more of their future plans," Kelly clarified. "Their plans to fill the op center with Spartans is…I don't understand why? Why take the people standing at a terminal augment them, and give them power armor when they aren't going to be in combat. It's a waste of an augmentation that should be going to a ground soldier and armor that should be deflecting plasma not making a tech look impressive. It seems to just be for appearance but it seems like more Spartans on the ground would make people more impressed than some people standing around in expensive armor completely out of harms way and not helping." Kelly regretted saying that. Even if this wasn't a formal conversation the comment felt like it was harsh. Still she couldn't take the comment back and she wouldn't lie and say she didn't believe what she'd said.

"It does seem like energy shields and unbreakable bones are better used on field units than support on a ship." Mendez frowned and shook his head slightly as the soldier in scout armor just started flat outrunning her opponents and they killed each other as they raced after her. "I don't really see what's the objective of this exercise."

"I believe they're only doing it for competition sake," Kelly informed him. "It doesn't serve any training purpose really. The competitors decided to partake, not ordered."

Mendez let out a low "Hmm," as he looked back to the results of the previous games. "This Spartan McKal seems to be doing well. The war game may be useful For finding stand outs."

"He's not really doing that well," Kelly corrected. "He's from the army, all the others are Air Force. Pilots. He's taking advantage of the fact that they aren't combat soldiers to stroke his own ego. That's why Spartan Palmer entered the game. She wanted to knock him down a peg or two."

"That explains their lack of tactics," Mendez muttered as he watched Palmer stand at the end of a hallway and dodge rare shots as her opponents picked each other off until there were few enough she could just beat the remainders to death with the ball. "Do you approve of her stepping in with that motive?"

"Yes," Kelly answered without hesitation. "Spartan McKal has become cocky picking on the lower skill of his fellow Spartans. Palmer has gone to show him he's no better to her than they are to him. I'll admit not the most honorable thing to do, knock him down and then kick him while he's down but he's getting a big head the way a teenager would by showing up five-year-olds."

Mendez nodded but Kelly wasn't sure if it was out of just acknowledgement or if he was agreeing with her. "Beside this group do you have any other concerns about or suggestions for the Spartan IVs?"

Kelly wasn't even sure where to start with that question. What sort of suggestions was he looking for? Did he mean concerns about the project as a whole or a out the soldiers. "Don't over think it," Mendez said in a slightly sharp voice.

Kelly took a deep breath and decided to just speak what came to mind. "Why are they taking soldiers from every branch. They seem to be trying to take them evenly from all the branches but I don't understand why."

"They have to appease all the branches. The navy will complain if they take more army troops for example. It's a matter of their soldier's pride," Mendez explained. "The Spartans can't risk a branch refusing to give them more soldiers because they feel unfairly treated."

"It just feels like that would leave the program quickly scrapping the barrel for a couple of them. I read the files about the original five Spartan IVs, they were chosen because they were ideal to be Spartans. They had proven that they were worthy of being Spartans. With some of these recruits it looks like if they got good grades and a Purple Heart they were admitted. It just doesn't feel like it's up to the standards befitting the legacy of my fallen family." Kelly pushed aside the sorrow of the years of loss.

"Can't say I don't agree, Spartan, but then again we don't have much away over that." Mendez clasped his hands behind his back and watched as the game ended, Palmer being the only player with any points. "So what's your final verdict on them? They are after all who is going to take up the Spartan name."

Kelly frowned, feeling uncomfortable with the question. She decided to go with the best response she could manage. "If they get more Palmers and less McKals then they'll be fine." At least Kelly hoped they would. There were only four of the Spartan IIs left and in the years to come these Spartan IVs would be what people thought of when thought of Spartans. They would carry on the legacy of Will, Joshua, Sam, and all the fallen Spartans. "It just concerns me that Spartans like McKal seem to treat this like a fantasy, like a dream come true and they aren't taking it seriously enough. I don't understand why it is that they didn't just hand out an invitation to every ODST that had experience from the war. Unlike marines and pilots who wish to be Spartans ODST don't want that. To them this is a chance to be better and do their job better. They would also create a strong, skilled starting class for the program."

"Sometimes the leaders above us make choices that we wouldn't," Mendez informed her. "We just have to live with their decisions and make the best of it." Mendez closed his eyes and let out a long breath. "Sometimes we're asked to do things that we think are illogical or immoral but we have our duty and that includes dealing with the choices of others." Kelly didn't exactly get everything he meant but she got the general idea. She just wasn't used to not having John as a buffer between her and the actions of their superiors.

"Sir, may I ask a question?" Kelly asked. Mendez looked a bit confused but nodded, allowing her question. "Why are you asking me about this? Shouldn't you be asking Fred, he's the head of the Spartan IIs now. Or Linda. She's better at observing."

"That may be true but I believe that I know the Spartans I trained and I've come to you." Mendez smiled a bit to himself. "Everyone has something to offer, what matters is which skill you need. You've always had a skill for knowing how to push people to be better, and that's what I need. Linda can tell me things about them but she doesn't have as personal of a touch. Fred has too personal of a touch, taking every word too seriously and it causes him to be harder to get to settle on an answer. You are honest but observant and over the years I've seen you support your team leaders through the hardest of times. That ability to recognize what is needed to be done to support these Spartans is what I need. And there's no one else I'd turn to."

Kelly smiled at the complement, not sure how much she agreed but acknowledging the comment. "Thank you, sir."

Mendez smiled and looked to the screen where the Spartans were leaving the war games area. "Seems that Spartan Palmer beat them a little too soundly so they quit." Mendez frowned a bit in disapproval. "What do you think of Spartan Palmer?"

"Yes, what do you think of me?" Kelly turned to look back at Spartan Palmer as she entered the room. She moved to stand a bit away from Kelly and her eyes stayed focused on the Spartan II.

"I think that next time they have a free for all we should both get in there so you can really put your skills to the test." Kelly smirked, happy to see the smirk returned.

"You're on Spartan," Palmer said in a confident tone.


End file.
